Mississippi River
Drought on Mississippi River expected to persist through winter
The Mississippi River hovered just a few inches below the low-water mark in Memphis Wednesday afternoon — a notable improvement after months of record drought, but still unusually low for this time of year. Lack of rain brought drought to much of the Mississippi River basin early this summer, and it’s likely going to linger […]
Saltwater intrusion creates drinking water emergency for southeast Louisiana
NEW ORLEANS — The historic drought currently baking Louisiana has created an emergency for areas in the southeastern part of the state that depend on the Mississippi River for their drinking water. The flow of saltwater upriver from the Gulf of Mexico is expected to reach New Orleans in exactly a month and has already […]
Gulf “dead zone” predicted to be twice the size of national goal. Again.
Scientists have released their 2023 forecast for the so-called “dead zone” in the Gulf of Mexico — predicting it will be around 4,100 square miles this summer. That’s much bigger than last year, but still smaller than average. The dead zone is a hypoxic area where low oxygen can kill fish and other marine life. It’s caused by […]